In the Wake of Destruction: Seireitou Kawahiru vs Raian Getsueikirite
The sky of Soul Society shattered like glass; well at least a portion of it. Raian emerged with a tattered robe; evidence of his training. For over a month he had been trapped in the Garganta, training in Jinzen intensely. Now it was done. His hair was ragged and flowing from not having been cut in over a month. From the looks of it, Soul Society had rebuilt since the war with Datara had ended. It never took them long to recover. Raian spun his sword and sheathed it in a scabbard on his back. He then landed on a dirt road leading to the Rukongai. In the distance he could see the Fake Karakura Town. Years ago, after the war with Aizen, the Gotei 13 decided to keep the fake town just in case it was ever needed again, but no one lived there. It was just a big empty ghost town, collecting dust. He decided to stroll through the town. No one could stop him. He had no reiatsu anymore so no one could sense him anyways. They were at a disadvantage, because he could still sense them, and was able to slip into the fake town without anyone noticing. He then made his way to the top of a nearby building where he observed the Seireitei in the distance; the place of the final battle with Datara. Although recovery was taking place, the city looked as if it was still in ruins. Little did he know that Datara had escaped. Little did he know that Kamui had been arrested. Today...that would all change. In the Beginning... In the midst of all the occurances, the infamous silver-haired man stood at the tallest tower in all of the Seijin structures. His eyes were blank of emotion, matching the very color of his striking silver hair. No thoughts were carried, no words were spoken. He stood a broken man, having his family ripped away from him member by member. With what will-power he still possessed, he began to look around, taking in a familiar presence. Raian knew that Seireitou had seen him. He could see the Seijin Temple off in the distance and could feel his presence there. He too had been stripped of his family and friends in the last war; every last one of them had died, except for Seireitou. He wanted to go to his friend and see how the recovery was going, but he decided against it. The silver-haired man was probably busy with Seijin affairs. Instead, he took his seat on the high skyscraper. He was almost amused that Seireitou was the only one who had noticed him. Without reiatsu even. Seireitou had spotted him. The two men seemed to draw the other's attention or presence whenever they were close to each other. Such was the bond of friendship between them. In someways Raian felt comforted from this, but then again, he wasn't in pain anymore. During his Jinzen training, his Bankai spirit had "ripped out" the source of his despair and forced him to fight it and slay it; killing it forever. All he felt now was peace. No happiness, or sadness; only peace. Despite his lack of emotional stability, his skills were of immense levels; not only did his spiritual power heighten by grand amounts, his innate physical abilities were also top-notch. He could easily eye Raian, even from a distance away. With a swift motion of his hand, he struck through the small statue near him to break away a small fragment, which was then placed inbetween his index finger and thumb, and then launched at high speeds, right for Raian; though it didn't possess the strength to cause any form of damage, it was mostly likely an opertunity for contact. Before the fragment even touched the building it was intended to hit, Raian had moved. Reappearing without a sound in the same room as Seireitou, in the top spire of the Seijin temple. He looked back at Seireitou. His reiatsu had grown by immense amounts, but things like reiatsu were of little concern to Raian now. Bankai users who had mastered Jinzen and achieved perfect harmony with their Zanpakutō were on a plain above Shinigami, Hollows, Humans, or even Sōzōshin and so was their reiatsu. This is why such beings could no longer sense him; unless, that is, he purposely lowered himself to their level again, which was nearly impossible to do. Still, Seireitou was strong, no one doubted that; especially not him. Raian's eyes flickered back to look at his friend. "What troubles you, Sei-san?" he asked, noticing the stotic look on the silver-haired man's face. The eyes of the silver-haired man looked over to Raian. The first thing he noticed was the lack of spiritual pressure, but this didn't matter; not at the moment anyways. Though he didn't have much opinion, his mind began to resonate with sound. "I see... you have reached the pinnacle of Shinigami power." Seireitou stood to his feet, but the way he moved, one could easily notice the lack of any desire for activity. Raian's question rang in his ears several times, despite it being only spoken once. Finally, he spoke. "What would make you think something's wrong?" he asked. The small cracks in his voice could easily give the implication that he had been sobbing. "Aside from your voice quality? Well there's the fact that you're expressionless; usually, Kamui is the expressionless one. You usually crack some joke. Further more, your movements indicate you are tired; mentally. You don't feel like doing much, so your body has essentially made itself tired." he replied. "You've been crying...haven't you?" he asked once more. Seireitou looked up alittle, the etchings of dry tears being spilt were evident on his cheeks. "They took him... they took Kamui, and I couldn't do anything. I'm just powerless. Everything... everything I do... nothing ever..." he stopped, attempting to hold back any new tears from falling. Raian sympathetically nodded. He had felt similar emotions many times before. Seireitou's tears were almost ironic. At one time, he and Kamui were trying to kill each other. Now they were as close as he and Mashū had been...when he was alive. "All of my friends and family died in the last war, Sei. I felt your pain at one time too. Kamui is strong. We can get him back...together." he replied softly. Something Raian wasn't expecting, was Seireitou's answer. "Don't be stupid." he answered, slight anger in his voice along with the depression he had shown earlier. "These guys... whoever they are, are unlike Shinigami. Who knows what powers they possess... and not only that, but they had the authority to enter Soul Society without real cause. You'd be a fool to join me there..." he stated. From the sound of it, one could easily mistaken Seireitou's words for underestimation, but this assumtion would be grossly incorrect. Seireitou was concerned for Raian, as he was the last important person to him that was still certainly alive. Raian was surprised by his friend's concern. It was unusual for Seireitou to be un-confident in their combine abilities to deal with threats. Raian knew this man well; words would convince him of nothing. Only actions would. Somehow, he had to show Seireitou that he really was ready. "Sei, you are unlike Shinigami. You're a Sōzōshin! Vizards are unlike Shinigami! Aizen, Akujin, Datara, you name the threat, they were all different. Should that....should that stop us from saving Kamui? I'd do it for you anytime, no matter the risk." he explained. Seireitou's eyes remained stoic, as they soon narrowed. "It doesn't matter... Kamui was arrested, and Datara escaped. No matter how strong I am... I continue to lose ever-..." his voice began cracking more, as he lowered his head. However, Raian could plainly see the small drops falling from the eyes of the man. Raian's eyes softened as memories of his encounter with his Zanpakutō spirit filled his brain. "Look at this world! You're sadness over the loss of your loved ones has reduced it to rubble! Can you even imagine the terror of your home crumbling all around you and there's not a dang thing you can do it about it?!" the spirit had said. Raian imagined Seireitou's zanpakutō probably felt similarly. The last time Raian had come to Seireitou in a similar state, the silver-haired man had done something to place confidence in him, to rejuvenate him; now it was his turn. In a flash, Raian grabbed Seireitou by the chest and flew at speeds unseen by the silver-haired legend. They arrived in Fake Karakura Town in a second and a half where Raian let him down to his feet. "Come on Sei," he continued to plea. "Surely you have some fight still left in you. You can do this!" The word 'fight' triggered a widening of his eyes, but the color still hadn't returned. Seireitou looked around the region he was in; it was the location of the defeat of Aizen by Ichigo Kurosaki. He remembered that he was in the Human world, a Vizard at the time, witnessing the fight from afar. Seireitou recalled how powerless he felt back then to assist, and how powerless he felt now. He looked up at Raian, "It wouldn't matter... nothing matters anymore..." "Looks like I'm gonna have to employ some aggressive negotiations here." Raian thought. He didn't want to, but it was the only way to snap Seireitou out of his depression. Doing this would most likely be harder for him than it would have been for Seireitou, since in Seireitou's case, he prided himself in snapping his friends out of sadness, whereas Raian tried to talk them out of it. He quickly pulled his sword out and cut the strings holding it's scabbard to his back, allowing the scabbard to fall to the ground. He raised his blade up far enough to point directly to Seireitou's own sword. "I no longer have any Shinigami powers in my sealed state. All I can do is flicker from place to place with my speed and fight with my sword." he explained. He wasn't a typical Shinigami in that he didn't often brag about his powers, therefore, he wasn't about to give Seireitou a warning. "Bankai!" he declared. Seireitou never saw the change. A crashing noise behind him could be heard, only for Raian to reappear there in a long black robe that flared out at the end. He pulled a hood of his head and let it dangle behind him. The sword he now held seemed to be fused with his hand, the moon-shaped crest that acted as a guard was larger; overall, Raian's Bankai had very much changed. "Sei, I do this because I care about you. It's time to 'pull out the source of your despair'." he said and in less than a second swiped his blade for Seireitou's chest. Aggressive Negotiations At that moment, Seireitou wished to be killed just then. He didn't move, and desire to have Raian's blade pierce through his heart, ending the pain he felt. However... his instincts kicked in, and with a swift movement of his hand, he drew Hanullim and blocked Raian's strike almost effortlessly. He rose his head slowly, much to Raian's surprise, as Seireitou's eyes emitted a faint hue of white spiritual energy. It was obvious from his posture that he wasn't fighting with his own mind, but rather his pure primal instinct. "Raian... don't make me fight you." he ordered, as he threw his leg up, attempting to kick him and create distance between the two. That distance was achieved, though not in the way Seireitou expected. As he kicked Rain, he himself was pushed away by the force of his own kick, while Raian remained motionless, as if Seireitou had struck an unmoving stone. "So that's the extent of which you are hurt..." he began to think. "When I touched your Zanpakutō with mine just now, I felt Hanullim's feelings. It's a side effect of being so closely linked with my zanpakutō now. Hanullim is confused, lonely, and sad. You've got to snap out of this, or Hanullim will retaliate they way Inyō Seikishutsu no Yaiba did to me three days after the final battle!" he warned. "I don't want to fight you, but it's the only way to show you that there is hope and that you still have people that care about you!" His next movement was equally speedy; slamming into Seireitou's blade with such force that the buildings behind the silver-haired man exploded. Seireitou held his blade horizontally, blocking Raian's slash, though the buildings behind him still exploded from the exerted force. "Hanullim... I'm sorry... I didn't realize... the pain I inflicted upon you... and even Raian. He's forced to fight me... and snap me out of depression because of my failures..." he thought to himself as he remembered what Kamui told him last time Datara invaded. "You gonna sit there and cry? Whining about how you were unable to protect something again?" Just then, Seireitou gritted his teeth, color returning to his eyes, as Raian's eyes widened themselves. "You gonna just sit there... and cry?" rang the statement again, the word 'cry' echoing in his mind as he began to push back Raian. "No... No, I'm done. I'm not... not going to cry any more...!" he declared to himself, as Hanullim began glowing golden, signifying its activation into Shikai. The very force of his spiritual energy began to rise, as he kneed Raian in the stomach; this time, the contact forced Raian backwards a short distance, much to the latter's surprise. Seireitou's lips curled into a small smile, as he looked up. "Well, whatta ya know. I can feel your power now." Raian grinned, "Somehow, I want to believe that." he replied. "Come to think of it, I didn't use my Bankai in our last fight, did I? Perhaps, with my power at this level, you and I will finally be able to understand each other's desire. With that, he charged in, swiping for Seireitou's chest once more. Once again, he blocked the strike with his sword, and flashed away to create distance once again. "Well then, I won't insult you then." he declared, as he began to emit a dense white aura. "Bankai." His body seemingly exploded into white flames, creating a large pillar that shot into the skies. There he stood, in his Hanullim-like appearance and red tear-like markings. His blade was slightly longer and straightened, resembling a Daitō. "Shinwaryeok Hanullim." he stated. It was more than clear, that his Bankai's might had overlapped the power it exhibited in their previous fight before the tournament. "It would appear your reiatsu is bigger than before. Such a silly thing, reiatsu is." Raian replied with a smirk on his face, glad to see his friend was back to his old self. "Good, now that he's back to his old self, I can fight at maximum. No point in insulting him with a lower level than usual." Raian thought. Suddenly, his reiatsu again vanished as he raised his power back to it's new normal level. He then gestured with his left hand, "I've been initiating things for awhile now...It's your turn to attack." he said with a "catch me if you can" look on his face. Bankai - The Master's Tool With a mere step, Seireitou flickered in an aura of light, appearing right against Raian's back. Seireitou twisted his body around, aiming to decapitate Raian. If one witnessed the blade at slow motion, one could see how it was blowing away the surroundings that stood parallel with the blade's shadow. It was also noted that the blade was coated in white flames, being the signature of Seireitou's attack strategies. Raian swung around faster than Seireitou had expected, catching the blade with his bare left hand, allowing the force of the blast to be distributed around him; blowing away the street directly to either side of him. The flames appeared to flee away from him as he gripped the blade tightly, surprisingly not getting a cut. Then with his sword hand, he brought his blade above his head and then down; aiming for a powerful blow across Seireitou's chest. Mimicking Raian's movement, Seireitou grabbed the middle section of the blade with his left hand. The force emitting from the blade tore away the ground behind the silver-haired man, as his hair also began to blow in the wind of the attack's results. "I'm surprised. You don't use any form of secondary power, like Datara did. And yet, you're able to grab the blade of Shinwaryeok Hanullim with mere Shinigami powers. Saying 'I'm impressed' would be an understatement." he expressed, lowering the firmly-held blade of Raian's Zanpakutō. "Aizen was cocky all those years ago when he assessed Kurosaki. To complete Bankai is to break the wall of Shinigami and Hollow. The two powers that once dominated my soul united into one when I underwent Jinzen training. Right now, I'm on the highest dimension of Shinigami power." he began. "If you have two separate powers struggling for dominance in your soul such as Hanullim and Sanagi often did to you, then it weakens your overall power drastically. Now take those two powers, combine them, and strip away meaningless things such as Kidō and reiatsu, and you have a power which transcends even the legendary Sōzōshin." Raian replied. He then smirked, "Not to mention, you just made a fatal mistake." He didn't bother explaining, he simply demonstrated. His Bankai blade phased through Seireitou's hand with a flick of his wrist, causing it to go limp. "My Bankai doesn't physically cut anything. That should've been obvious when I razed those buildings earlier. It cuts the soul, and it does so by phasing through a foe when it would normally cut them." he explained. He then placed his left hand on top of his blade's blunt end. "Now I'll show you my newest move." With that, dark blue-purple energy enveloped his blade. "This is the sister technique to Getsuga Tenshō and your own Shikon Hisakiten." he said, raising the blade above his head. His hair briefly parted, revealing his glowing eyes. "Getsuga Taiyōnami!" he roared as the dark blue-purple energy enveloped them with a slash of his blade. Quickly realizing that a glow of spiritual energy meant an attack was coming, Seireitou quickly fled the scene before real contact was made between himself and the Getsuga Taiyōnami. "I see. Raian's obtained some nifty new techniques in his time away." he noted, as he witness the attack finally ending. Once he made this certain, Seireitou flashed for Raian with his incredible speed, launching off an instant Shikon Hisakiten from the edge of his blade, for Raian's shoulder. Raian moved his hand swiftly through the attack, cutting it in two and causing the two parts of the attack to be deflected behind him, causing the destruction of a nearby building. He then flicked his blade, causing it to transform into many chains which extended in Seireitou's direction. They separated and surrounded him from all sides before closing in on the silver-haired man. Witnessing the chains approaching, Seireitou began to spin his blade in front of him, as several white flames jumped off of it in a pinwheel shape. It created an aura of flames which contended with the chains, giving Seireitou more than enough time to jump forward, far enough that the ends of the chains could not follow. Within a mere moment, Seireitou and Raian clashed eyesights, being only a foot away, as Seireitou swung his blade down on Raian's chest at a speed unbeknownst to any normal person. Raian backpedaled to avoid the attack, which wasn't enough to totally avoid it, but he avoided major damage. Instead, his robed was cut from the shoulder to the waist, causing it to hang off of his body. He then returned his blade to sword form and assumed the Getsuga Taiyōnami position. "I think you're ready to see it now; the “''Ultimate Truth of the Cosmic Dual Forces''”." he said. Suddenly, he became enveloped with dark energy which imploded outwards. His black hair elongated past his waist, his eyes transformed into a similar appearance to his former Inner Hollow's eyes, he lost his robes and a little more than half of his torso, as well as half of his face, became covered by a blue, crystal-like encasing. His blade was gone and he was now completely surrounded by Getsuga Taiyōnami energy. "Now I am one with Inyō Seikishutsu no Yaiba. Now I am the Onmyō." he declared as the transformation completed. He then recalled gaining the technique, as this was the first time he'd entered the Onmyō state outside of Jinzen. "To gain this power, I had to discard all Shinigami and Hollow powers other than my Bankai; Hollowfication, Kidō, reiatsu, all gone. That was the price I paid for this. In my sealed state, I am no more powerful than an average human, save for the fact that I can move at incredible speeds. For this reason, I can stay in Bankai for as long as I desire...unless I use this move. Attack me if you dare. It doesn't matter. Like I said; this battle is one to pull out your despair, and this technique is the only one capable of doing that." Onyō - The Sun and the Moon Seireitou stared slightly in shock at the power being exhibited, but then a small laugh began to form in his mouth; starting as a small chuckle, it erupted into full-blown laugher. As it slowed down, Seireitou smiled widely at Raian. "Hanging out with Kurosaki alittle too much now, have we?" he joked, as he raised his blade up. Though he knew his regular Bankai wouldn't be enough to win against this form, he still remained silent; he wanted to know just how far he could push himself. Raian smirked beneath the encasing, remembering his first encounter with Ichigo. He then considered the effect of his next action. "There's something I haven't told Sei about what using this power will do to me, but it's for the better. Ichigo is still in Karakura. If I seek him out after this....maybe I can live a normal life there. He can help me find a place to live and everything. Yeah... Still, I'll miss this life. It is one I've lived for over twenty years. Losing my power...will sting, but if I can evaporate Sanagi's soul from Seireitou completely, he'll be ready for what's to come." Raian thought inwardly. "Sei! Once I attack, there will be no more room for counter strikes. This fight'll be over. Promise me one thing though. When this ends, please take me to Karakura Town in the real world. I won't be able to go there on my own anymore." he shouted. He then reappeared right beside Seireitou and declared, "Onyō..." Darkness shrouded them for miles around. Within the dark veil, the energy wrapped around Seireitou and began to snuff Sanagi out of existance; out of his soul. Soon after the darkness cleared and Raian's transformation fell apart. His reiatsu vanished...along with all of his powers. His Zanpakutō didn't return and he panted in pain. He could only hope that his attack had worked. If it hadn't, Sanagi would continue to hold Seireitou back from bringing his Shinigami powers to the peak. In complete defiance, Raian's technique caused the crystal mask to appear on Seireitou's face. However, it then disappeared by the will of Seireitou. "Did you... really think it was that simple?" he expressed, panting alittle as he stood upright. "Sanagi is a part of me, despair or joy. Despair is nessicary... it lets us know we're alive. The trick is... not to let it conquer you. Raian, you forced it out of me. This made me feel something that nobody ever made me feel... it ain't about getting stronger, or being the best... but in the end, the only way you know who you are... is by proving that you exist... that you're alive. Thank you, Raian." he stated softly, though the effort of repelling back Raian's attack took alot out of him. Raian was at the edge of consciousness, "Sei...there is a threat growing out there. Datara obviously, but there seems to be more to it. For now, my powers have departed from me. I need to work together with Urahara and Ichigo for the time being on preparing for this threat. You'd do your best to start training again and to gather Soul Society's might. When we meet again...it'll be time to go after Datara and kill that....that no good Kawahiru-wannabe.. You and I...just as I promised. Powers or no powers." Raian said, dropping to his knees as his strength began to leave him. As Raian lapsed into unconsciousness, Seireitou grabbed him in his arms, bearing a narrowed-eyed serious look on his face. The scene shifted to the World of the Living; 6:05 a.m. Kisuke Urahara yawned in his usual comic way, sliding the door off to the side as his attention was brought upon the silver-haired man, holding Raian. Seireitou and Urahara met eye-to-eye, as Urahara nodded silently. Raian was left at Urahara's feet, as Seireitou disappeared. He reappeared at the top of a large building, looking at the rising sun. "Time to pay Yukara a visit."